52 weeks
A year of photography
At the beginning of 2023, I began a challenge where one would produce an image per week for the year. With 4 prompts per month, I would be submitting 52 different photos. I added an exception where I was able to use any photo I took within the year so I wouldn’t stop photographing once I completed a month’s prompts. This is a collection of the year’s work
january
setting goals
past experiences
I’ve been doing photography for 6 years up to this point. I learned a lot in that time but I wanted to push my art further which is why I participated in this challenge. To stop being stagnated and to continue forward with progression. This is my first photo of the year
Another hobby
I enjoy hiking. I live in Utah so it’s a given haha. I have taken so many landscape photos though, so I’m trying to step away from this genre and branch out more to a more street and documentary style.
Artistic Fears
I struggle with the notion of getting the perfect photo. To never leave a scene until I have the perfect composition, the perfect light, the perfect exposure. This was one photo where this struggle showed it’s self. I spent an hour to find the perfect angle to capture this building only to realize that I got the perfect photo on my third test shot. Perfection can bog you down. It’s important to be happy with what you were able to capture and not focus on what could have been
Goal for the year
My goal for the year was to focus more on night photos since that was an area I didn’t exercise a lot and I was beginning a graveyard shift. I wanted to keep my consistency in a different type of light and to explore in the night
Feburary
the everyday
One object
I found this building one morning drive and I wanted to capture it a way that conveys what I saw. I could never find an angle or type of lighting that I enjoyed so I settled for this frame. I used the donut shop photo for inspiration and used similar techniques for this one
What’s in your bag?
As the years have passed and my photography has progressed, I began to carry very minimally. I now only carry a notebook, a book, and my camera.
Your Home
Home is anywhere for me. Either on the road experiencing life differently daily or having mundane be the routine. As long as I’m creating art, I’m home
A Day in the Life
I spend a lot of my time in coffee shops. I would even say it’s a hobby at this point. I just enjoy exploring and seeing what is out in the world. On this day, my cousin and I visited a Turkish café where we enjoyed coffee brewed in sand and rich pastries
march
community
Recreation of a peer’s photo
I saw a photo from another participant from the challenge where they lined up fruit on a blank background. I also saw a similar photo on Instagram and decided I would use my strobe to setup a similar scene. I remember having to cut multiple fruits to get the cores that looked just ‘right’. I ate a lot of oranges that day..
Community outside of photography
My brother skates and is growing his following and his community so I took photos for them. I had to get real close with my 20mm to get these dynamic shots
Your Neighborhood
This is an area that I frequent in my neighborhood. It’s also a very popular location for the locals because of it’s photogenic scenery. Luckily, this day was very snowy so it was just my cousin and me taking photos. I wanted something that says ‘snowy town’ and I think this photo conveys that
Feedback from a peer
ok..I almost completed all of the challenges..
so, here are some ducks
Cute, aren’t they?
april
color
Color Blocking
Using the same technique from the previous month, I created a triptych of fruit using orange, red, blue, and purple. Once again, ate a lot of fruit that day
Color Temperature: Warm
I wanted to create more ‘warm’ photos so I began developing an editing technique that would accomplish this. This is the first iteration where I was trying to recreate a ‘film’ look that leaned into a warmer tone. As the challenge went on, this look would take a more individual, mature form until it transformed into my defined style
Color Symbolism
Cherry blossom season. I wanted a color that would pair well with the blooming trees and the coming spring but also, a color that would compliment my growing style. I decided on pink and I think it’s fitting. I used split toning and HSL to create pink undertones and highlights. This is the first time I used unorthodox coloring in a photo. While the effect is a little too strong, I think it works well
Desaturated
This was a nice beautiful day filled with color and I chose to convert this image to black and white. The reason is because of the gray and silvers that were hiding in the colors. While color photos are amazing and I always prefer color, it’s important to understand how light is also able to ‘color’ a scene with gradation.
May
abstract
Movement
ok. So I didn’t realize that this month was supposed to be abstract theme but I still used the prompts to inspire these images. I was photographing this building when I saw a biker cutting through a parking lot. It looked as if he was about to cross in front so I got my camera ready and captured this photo. I like how his motion is frozen and he even contrasts with the blue building but I wonder how it would look with some motion blur. Still, I enjoy this one
Light and Shadow
Sitting at a coffee shop, light was coming through these big windows and beaming down on this person. It’s very important to study light and how it interacts with it’s environments because you’ll understand when light will create interesting shapes and stunning contrast
Human Emotion
This day is very important to me. A lot of emotional build up was affecting me and I thought I lost something I really cared about. Through the exhaustion, you can see a weak smile on my face
Patterns and Textures
Honestly, nothing to note here. I liked the symmetry of this building and the vertical lines on the garage doors. Not my best work but not every photo needs to be great
June
portraiture
Self-portrait
Just me and my cat shirt
…of a friend
A photo of my cousin, my best friend
…of a stranger
A stranger I met at a park. He talked about his love for music
Candid
The day my cousin and I got kombucha. This was one of his last days in Utah and it’s such a fleeting moment that I’m happy I captured to remember.
july
check in
Check-in
At this point, I haven’t taken much night photos. I never felt much inspired to take photos at night so I continued in the day after work. I took this photo before a breakfast with friends in the heat of a summer morning
Revaluating Goals
I wanted to get a more consistent style going. My editing has always been ‘off’ so I wanted to create an aesthetic that is unique to me. A more ‘warm’ and ‘familiar’ feeling in my photos. To elevate the mundane into nostalgic
Reimagine a Previous Submission
I didn’t like my self portrait submission so I chose one I took later in the year. This was in October where I was more motivated to take selfies with the changing leaves. I imagined this photo of a person looking at the change of leaves with light shinning on them
Compositional Guidelines
Came across this trailer and liked how the post is coming out from behind. I used a type of rule of thirds to create layers with the street, the tress, and the sky. Reminds me of a submarine
august
mise-en-scene
Setting
All of these were taken in October, where I was more inspired to create self portraits with a theme. The setting is a forest in the peak of fall with the leaves vivid orange carpeting the floor
Décor
As I was growing up, I spent my days browsing tumblr. I saw a lot of posts that showed a more ‘day in the life’ with objects arranged in a similar fashion. This is my ‘photographer’s’ day in the life
Lighting
In this particular location in the forest, light shines through the trees and beams onto this bench. A great way to light the subject and make them pop
Depth of Space
With all of the fallen trees and leaves, one can create a sense of depth using foreground elements. I wanted to create a ‘bigger than you’ feeling with this one
Personal Style and a e s t h e t i c s
Using all of the elements, I created a self portrait that follows the themes of Fall and my own personal style. Using the light to illuminate the subject and the intricate details around.
September
exploring genres
Landscapes
Throughout this year, I’ve been trying to accomplish a more ‘simple’ style to my landscapes. More on the nose than in epic scale. Using my 150mm on a Hasselblad, I captured a more compressed and easy to follow landscape of the late summer.
Documentary/Photojournalism
Buildings tell their own stories. This one was once a run down Wendy’s and then into an abandoned structure where homeless would make home. Now it’s a Street Tacos. But I’m pretty sure it’s a front for something of more ‘outside of the law’
Wildlife
Bugs count as wildlife right?? This was taken at a butterfly biodome with my Hasselblad 500cm. It was a pain to pin down these insects with such a camera
Sports/Action
A genre I have no interest in. But I saw these bikers coming across as I was out on a hike and took a photo. This is a little more generic for my taste but I was practicing panoramas with my 20mm and figured the scene fit the format
October
timing
Same Location: 3 times
A very common scene in my photography as I come across it almost every time I go out. It’s almost ritualistic. The first is captured at the start of spring with the harsh light warming after a cool morning. The second is of late summer with the low setting sun creating long shadows. The last is of early winter where the leaves are gone but the snow hasn’t arrived yet. The angled sun changing throughout each season
Time Traveler
The first photo was taken years ago. I believed it to be an astonishing landscape with the boulder being highlighted as the main subject. The second is taken this month. With the heavy fog and the two front trees becoming more standout than in the first photo
Waiting
Patience is a key to photography. You need patience to endure the artist blocks. And you need it to wait for the perfect moment as I did with this scene. While it’s not perfect, I practiced the ability of waiting
The Definitive Moment
The moment where the photo becomes ‘complete’. It’s sometimes just waiting for the light to hit just right or a subject to move a certain way. It can be hard to find but look for the things that make you go ‘that’s it!’
November
inspired by
What are you watching?
Fantastic Mr. Fox is one of my favorite movies. The art style and the corny-ness just makes me fall in love with it. I wanted to recreate the ‘warmness’ and orange tone of the film and also the compressed look of the scenes
What are you reading?
I actually don’t read a lot..but here’s a picture of a book store!
What are you listening to?
Matt and Kim have been a top artist for me for a long time. I attended one of their concerts and took some photos with a point and shoot camera
Inspiring Photographer
I actually don’t remember the photographer but I saw a portrait photographer who edited their photos with these intense colors but also a softness to their images. This is my attempt to recreate their style
December
wrapping up…
Recreate Another Photo
I wanted to recreate the “What’s in my bag?” prompt. Not much has changed since the beginning of the year. Still carry a notebook and a camera
Challenges
The main challenge I had was shooting in the night time. Needing to dial in settings and then white balance to accommodate different types of lights was a pain at first. But I eventually learned to overcome this and even find beauty in the night time
Successes
The biggest success of this year was my editing. I learned to create a consistent and vibrant style that I feel is unique to me. Though, I think it looks a little on the AI generated side of things but I branched out from the popular ‘film’ look
Revisiting Goals
After thinking about my goals and writing out all of these descriptors, I’ve come to the conclusion that I accomplished my goals that I set out to complete. I am more comfortable at shooting in the night time and my editing style is where I want it to be. I have become more consistent with my craft and I have ultimately improved. While it was discouraging to keep up with my best work at the beginning of the year, I kept at it and captured some memorable moments with my camera
…next steps
So what’s next?
I decided to not continue the challenge into the next year. This challenge has made 2023 very special with memories that I want to cherish and I think continuing it would taint the uniqueness of the year.
But I will continue to take photos. As always.
And I might take a peek at the monthly prompts when ever I need a little inspiration. But no more yearly challenges for me. I’m happy and proud I stuck with this.
And into the next year!